Card game and method of playing

ABSTRACT

In a card game played with a deck of conventional playing cards, the face value of each card in each player&#39;s hand is added up. When the sum of the cards in each player&#39;s hand is more than one digit, the leading digit is removed to leave a single digit (e.g.; 13 is changed to 3, 20 is changed to 0, 25 to 5, and 18 to 8). In one implementation, the player with the single-digit value now closest to 8, without going over 8, is the winner.

CROSS NOTING

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/743,110, filed on Jan. 9, 2006, titled Card Game and Method ofPlaying, by Dan Stone, which is incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to gaming. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to card games and methods for playing card games.

BACKGROUND

Numerous card games are known in the prior art. Some card games arepredominantly games of skill in which a player's skill significantlyincreases his or her chance of winning. Other card games arepredominantly games of chance in which winning or losing depends on therandom chance of a certain card being turned rather than the skill ofthe player. Hosts of card games (e.g. casinos) seek to attract playersby offering games that have a desirable balance of skill and chancewhile also being interesting. It would be an advance in the art toprovide such card games.

SUMMARY

In each of the following implementations of the inventive card game,which are given in brief here by way of a summary of the same, the facevalue of each card in each player's hand is added up. When the sum ofthe cards in each player's hand is more than one digit, the leadingdigit is removed to leave a single digit (e.g.; 13 is changed to 3, 20is changed to 0, 25 to 5, and 18 to 8).

In one implementation, each player is dealt two cards. Then, each playerhas the option of being dealt (“buying”) a third card for an additionalbet. The player with the single-digit value now closest to 8, withoutgoing over 8, is the winner.

In another implementation, a player plays against all other players. Insuch implementations, there is no “House” playing against the playersand, before any cards are dealt, each player bets an initial requiredwager, known as an “ante”. Each player is then dealt, clockwise, twocards—the first face up, the second face down. There is a round ofbetting after the first two cards are dealt, and a round of bettingafter each player still in the hand decides whether or not to buy athird card. When there are two or more hands of equal value, a hand withthree cards beats a hand with only two cards. This and other variationsof the player-versus-all-other-players version of the game may be playedwith a betting limit (“limit”) or without a betting limit (“no limit”).

In another implementation, each player plays against a dealer (“theHouse”) and, before any cards are dealt, each player bets an ante. Eachplayer and the dealer are then dealt, clockwise beginning with theplayer to the left of the dealer, one card face up. Each player is thendealt in turn a second card, also face up. The dealer is then dealt asecond card, face down. If a player's first two cards are 4 and 4, theplayer immediately receives his/her bet on that hand plus winnings equalto 8 times his/her bet. Each player is then given the option to buy athird card. No additional money needs to be bet to keep the original twocards. The dealer then turns up his/her down card.

If the value of the dealer's two cards is 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 9, the dealerreceives a third card. If the value is 5, 6, 7 or 8, the dealer stayswith his/her original two cards. If the player's value is now closer to8 than the value of the dealer's hand, without going over (a value of 9is known as “an Over”), then the player receives his/her bet(s) on thathand plus an equal amount in winnings. If the dealer's value is closerto 8, then the dealer collects the player's bet.

If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, and the player hasthree cards and the dealer has two cards, then the player receiveshis/her bet(s) on that hand plus an equal amount in winnings. If theplayer's value is equal to the dealer's value, and the player has twocards and the dealer has three cards, then the dealer collects theplayer's bet. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, andthe player and the dealer have the same number of cards, the playerreceives his/her bet(s) but no winnings (“a tie”) with one exception: ifthe dealer and the player each have a three-card hand with a value of 9(known as “Two Over”), the player receives his/her bets on that handplus winnings equal to 8 times his/her bets.

In another implementation, a player can make a side bet against theHouse. In this side bet variation of the game, a player is allowed theoption of placing an additional bet (the “Chi bet”, or “Qi bet”) beforeany cards are dealt, separate from the ante bet. If the player's firsttwo cards are a pair of Aces, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s, 7s, 9s or 10s, thenthe player receives his/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 8 times theChi bet. If the player's first two cards are a pair of 8s then theplayer receives his/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 88 times the Chibet. Note here that the House advantage is approximately 3.35% of thetotal bet by the player.

In yet another implementation, one additional payout can be added at thediscretion of the House in a multi-deck structure: If the player's firsttwo cards are the Ace of Diamonds and the 7 of Diamonds (not necessarilyin that order) and the dealer's player's first two cards are also theAce of Diamonds and the 7 of Diamonds (not necessarily in that order),the player receives his/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 10,000 timesthe Chi bet—this outcome is called “The Perfect”. At the discretion ofthe House, the requirements for The Perfect can be changed from the Aceand 7 of Diamonds for both player and dealer to the Ace and 7 of adifferent suit (Spades, Hearts or Clubs) for both player and dealer orto any two defined cards of a given suit for both player and dealer(e.g.; the King of Hearts and the 8 of Hearts, the Ten of Diamonds andthe 8 of Diamonds, etc.). Note here that the House advantage for 0009and 0010 is approximately 3.05% of the total bet by the player.

Another implementation provides both a main card game and a side betvariation thereof. The side bet variation provides rules whereby: (i)when a player gets a pair of As, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s, 7s, 9s or 10s, thatplayer receives nine-fold of the player's wager (e.g.; the player getshis/her wager back plus 8× in winnings); and (ii) when a player gets apair of 8s, that player receives eighty-nine-fold of the player's wager(e.g.; the player gets his/her wager back plus 88× in winnings). Notehere that the House advantage is approximately 3.35% of the total bet bythe player. If the side bet variation includes the additional payout in0010, the House advantage is approximately 3.05% of the total bet by theplayer.

The main game of this implementation provides rules whereby: (i) theplayer must double his/her initial “ante” bet ($1 in this example) tobuy a 3^(rd) card; (ii) the dealer takes a 3^(rd) card with any two-cardcombination except 5, 6, 7 or 8; and (ii) the player then gets paid evenmoney with a winning two-card or three-card hand with two exceptions:(A) The player gets paid 8:1 ($1 bet is returned with $8 winnings) witha two-card hand of 4 and 4; and (B) the player gets paid 8:1 ($2 betsare returned with $16 winnings) when both his/her three-card hand andthe dealer's three-card hand have a value of 9 (Two Over).

In this implementation, if the player's value is equal to the dealer'svalue, and the player has three cards and the dealer has two cards, thenthe player receives his/her bet(s) on that hand plus an equal amount inwinnings. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, and theplayer has two cards and the dealer has three cards, then the dealercollects the player's bet. Neither the player nor dealer win (e.g.; the$1 or $2 bet is returned) when both have the same hand values and thesame number of cards—except for when the player's three-card sum to avalue of 9 and the dealer's three-card sum to a value of 9. The playermay use an optimal strategy to buy a 3^(rd) card with a two-card valueof: (i) 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 or 9 or 0; or (ii) 5 when the dealer's exposedcard is 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9. Note here that the House advantage isapproximately 1.7%.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

In order that the manner in which the above-recited and other advantagesand features of the invention are obtained, a more particulardescription of the invention briefly described above will be rendered byreference to specific embodiments thereof which are illustrated in theappended drawing. Understanding that the drawing depicts only typicalembodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be consideredlimiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explainedwith additional specificity and detail through the use of theaccompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 shows an environment suitable for playing implementations of theinventive card game disclosed herein.

DESCRIPTION

The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawing, in which some, but not allembodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, this invention may beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments as set forth herein; rather, these embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legalrequirements.

Implementations of a card game are disclosed. One or more suchimplementations can be played on a card table, an example of which isseen in FIG. 1. With reference to FIG. 1, a basic layout 10 for playingimplementations of the disclosed card game according is illustrated. Ofcourse it is to be understood that many other layouts could be adoptedto accomplish the disclosed implementations.

The layout 10 may be fashioned on a felt table and is configured to havea plurality of player positions shown as player positions 12 around thelayout 10. A dealer's position 14 is also provided in view of theplayers. A tray 16 is provided proximate to the dealer's position 14 toaccommodate the wagering tokens, i.e. chips, paid and received duringthe play of the game.

Associated with each player 12 is a wagering area 20 which may be markedby a circle, logo or other graphic sufficient to enable the player anddealer to associate a wager made by the player in that area with thespecific player. For purposes of illustration, layout 10 has thesewagering areas 20 indicated by circles, although other shapes such as alogo or square may be used, which shapes may be inscribed with thephrase “Bet”. Of course other suitable indicia may be used.

Proximate the wagering area 20 for each player is a supplemental or sidebetting area 22. Side betting area 22 may be suitably identified toassociate a wager in this area with the specific player. A diamond,circle, logo or square may be used and the area may be inscribed withthe phrase “Chi” or “Qi”. Indicia 24 may be situated upon the felt tableof layout 10 so as to provide a written explanation of the rules of theimplementation of the game of cards being played in the environment oflayout 10. By way of example, and not by way of limitation, indicia 24may be labeled the following text “Dealer Stays On 5 Through 8; 4 & 4pays 8:1; “Two Over” pays 8:1; All Other Winning Hands Pay Even Money;Chi Pays 8:1 or 88:1”.

Of course other suitable indicia may be used. With the layout 10 of FIG.1 now described, implementations for playing the card game of chanceaccording to invention will now be set forth.

The game is played with one or more traditional fifty-two (52) carddecks of playing cards. The dealer deals from the deck or decks for eachsuccession of hands until re-shuffling is required. The casino or Housechooses when to reshuffle.

I. First Implementation

In a first implementation, a card game is played by at least twoplayers. In general, each player is dealt two (2) cards. Then, eachplayer has the option of buying a third card. The face value of eachcard in each player's hand is added up, with the card value of a 10,jack, queen or king being zero. When the sum of the cards in eachplayer's hand is more than one digit, the leading digit is removed toleave a single digit (e.g., 13 is changed to 3, 20 is changed to 0, 25is changed to 5, and 18 is changed to 8). The player with the singledigit closest to 8, without going over 8, is the winner. Although thereare variations on this implementation of the card game, these rules forcalculating the value of a hand of cards are common through eachvariation of the implementations disclosed herein.

II. Player Against Other Players Implementation

In another implementation, a player plays against all other players. Inthis implementation, the card game can be played online, in a casino(where the casino provides a dealer and collects a percentage of eachpot {the “rake”}) or elsewhere. Each player plays against the otherplayers, there is no House playing against the players, and each playerstill in the game after the first round of betting has the option ofbuying an additional, third card.

A. Player vs. Other Players Variation without Limit Format (“No Limit”)

Within this implementation (IIA), each player plays against the otherplayers, there is no House to play against, the amount of the antes areagreed in advance, any player can bet any or all of his/her cash and/orchips on the table at any time after the first two cards are dealt, andeach remaining player must either fold his/her hand or call the totalamount bet or call with all his/her cash and/or chips on the table(“all-in call”) if the total amount bet exceeds a player's total cashand/or chips on the table or raise an additional amount. If a playerbets all his/her cash or chips and a remaining player wants to bet morethan another player's “all-in bet” and has the cash and/or chips on thetable to do so, a side pot representing the difference between the newbet and the all-in bet is established, and each remaining player musteither fold his/her hand, make an all-in call if the total amount betexceeds a player's total cash and/or chips on the table, call both theall-in bet and the side-pot bet(s), or call the all-in bet and raise theside-pot bet(s). Any player who has made an all-in bet or all-in callcannot be forced to fold his/her hand or required to put additionalmoney into the pot.

The card game is played with at least one deck of playing cards and atleast two players. Before any cards are dealt, each player must place abet in the pot, called the “ante”. Each player is dealt, clockwisestarting with the player to the left of the dealer and concluding withthe dealer, two cards (the “hand”)—the first card is dealt face up toeach player, then the second card is dealt face down. There is a roundof betting, starting with the player to the left of the dealer—theplayer has the option to bet at least the amount of the ante (“leadout”) or choose not to bet (“check”). If the first player doesn't bet,the next player to his/her left has the option to lead out or check; ifthe first player has bet, the next player must either match the size ofthe bet (“call”), make a bet which is at least the amount of the leadout (“raise”) or discard his/her cards and withdraw from that hand(“fold”).

Any time a player folds, he/she forfeits whatever he/she has bet up tothat point in the hand. Each player to the left decides in turn whetherto fold, to call the amount of the largest bet made to that point in thebetting round, or to raise the largest bet made to that point in theround. The betting continues until each player has either called orfolded his/her hand. After this first round of betting is completed,each player who has not folded, beginning to the left of the dealer andprogressing clockwise, can choose to buy a third card for an additionalbet (or waive the additional bet, known as “Freebie”) as agreed upon bythe players prior to the start of the game. The third card is dealt faceup or face down, also as agreed-upon by the players prior to the startof the game.

After each player has decided whether to stay with the original twocards (“hold”) or to buy a third card, a second round of betting ensues,beginning with the first player to the left of the dealer who is stillin the hand, and progressing clockwise. After the second round ofbetting is completed, each player who has not folded reveals his/hercards. The remaining player the value of whose hand is now closest to 8,without going over, wins all the money which has been bet on thathand—only the final digit matters (for example, 5 and 15 and 25 are allthe same value: 5). If there are two or more top-value hands, athree-card hand beats a two-card hand. If there are still two or moretop-value hands, each with the same number of cards, the players withthese top-value hands split the pot evenly (“a tie”). If a player'svalue on a hand is 9 (“an Over”), that player is required to doublehis/her ante bet on the next hand (“Pay the Over”).

The new dealer, who is the player to the left of the previous dealer,then requests the antes from all the players and deals a new hand toeach player, again beginning with the player to his/her left andproceeding clockwise. If a casino provides the dealer and collects apercentage from each pot (the “rake”), there is a “dealer chip”, whichrotates one player to the left after each hand—the dealer then dealseach hand as if he/she were sitting in the seat designated by the dealerchip.

B. Player vs. Other Players Variation with a Limit Format

Within this implementation (IIB), and like variation (IIA), each playerplays against the other players and there is no House to play against.In this variation, however, the card game can be played in a “limit”format, in which the size of bets in each round of wagering, and themaximum number of raises each round, are agreed in advance. For example,the players might agree that the size of each bet in the first round ofbetting is 4 times the ante bet and the size of each bet in the secondround of betting is 8 times the ante bet, and the maximum number ofraises each round is 4.

III. Player Against the House Implementation

In yet another implementation, which can be played in a casino, online,video or home version of this implementation of the inventive card game,each player plays against the dealer (the House), and each player mustput up an ante bet and must wager more money in order to be dealt athird card. No additional wager money needs to be bet by the player whochooses to stay with his/her original two (2) cards. The player vs.dealer variations of this card game can be played in the following four(4) variations.

A. First Variation

Within the first variation, before any cards are dealt, each player mustplace a bet (an “ante”). For instance, the bet can be placed in the“Bet” circle of a special card table, such as is described in IV, below.Each player and the dealer are then dealt, clockwise beginning with theplayer to the left of the dealer, one card face up. Each player is thendealt in turn a second card, also face up. The dealer is then dealt asecond card, face down. If a player's first two cards are 4 and 4, theplayer immediately receives his/her bet on that hand plus winnings equalto 8 times his/her bet.

Each player can choose to buy a third card by placing an additional bet(the required amount stated prior to the initiation of play, usually anamount which matches the ante) next to the original bet in his/her Betcircle. After each player has decided whether to stay with the originaltwo cards (“hold”) or to buy a third card, the dealer then turns uphis/her down card. If the value of the dealer's two cards (only thefinal digit matters—for example, 4 and 14 and 24 are all the same value:4) is 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 9, the dealer receives a third card. If thevalue of the dealer's two cards (only the final digit matters—forexample, 7 and 17 and 27 are all the same value: 7) is 5, 6, 7 or 8, thedealer does not receive a third card.

If the player's value is now closer to 8 than the value of the dealer'shand, without going over 8, then the player receives his/her bet(s) onthat hand plus an equal amount in winnings. If the dealer's value iscloser to 8, without going over 8, then the dealer collects the player'sbet. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, and theplayer has three cards and the dealer has two cards, then the playerreceives his/her bets on that hand plus an equal amount in winnings. Ifthe player's value is equal to the dealer's value, and the player hastwo cards and the dealer has three cards, then the dealer collects theplayer's bet. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, andthe player and the dealer have the same number of cards, the playerreceives his/her bet(s) but no winnings (“tie”) with one exception: ifthe dealer and the player each have a three-card hand with a value of 9(known as “Two Over”), the player receives his/her bets on that handplus winnings equal to 8 times his/her bets.

B. Second Variation

Within the second variation of this implementation, which is like thefirst variation (IIIA), the dealer also collects a percentage of eachpot (“rake”).

C. Third Variation

Within the third variation, in addition to the rules of play against theother players at the table as described in Implementations I-II, eachplayer also plays against the dealer (the House). In addition to theinitial ante which each player makes, each player makes a “House Bet”equal in amount to the ante—both bets are made prior to the dealing ofthe first two cards. The dealer's position does not change and thedealer is an employee of the casino. The dealer deals the initial twocards in turn to each player, beginning to the left of the positiondesignated by the dealer chip, and to the dealer as well—in each case,the first card face up, the second card face down.

After the first round of betting amongst the players, each player whohas not folded his/her hand has the option to buy a third card byplacing an additional House Bet (the required amount stated prior to theinitiation of play, usually an amount which matches the ante) next tothe original bet in his/her Bet circle—if the player chooses to buy athird card, it is dealt face up.

After each player has decided whether or not to buy a third card, thereis a second round of betting amongst the remaining players. After thesecond round of betting, the players who have not folded reveal theirhands. Any player who folds in the first or second round of bettingforfeits whatever he/she had bet to that point in the hand as well asthe House Bet(s).

The player the value of whose hand is now closest to 8, without goingover, wins all the money which has been bet amongst the players on thathand (which excludes the House Bets). If there is an equal value betweentwo or more top-value hands, a three-card hand beats a two-card hand. Ifthere is an equal value between two or more top-value hands and eachhand has the same number of cards, the players with these top-valuehands split the pot evenly (“a tie”).

The dealer collects all the House Bets which the players have forfeitedby folding. The dealer then turns up his/her down card and takes a thirdcard face up when the value of his/her hand is 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 9. If aplayer's first two cards are 4 and 4, the player receives from thedealer his/her bet on that hand plus winnings equal to 8 times his/herbet. In addition, each remaining player the sum of whose hand is nowless than the sum of the dealer's hand (provided that the value of thedealer's hand does not exceed 8) loses his/her House Bet(s), which iscollected by the dealer.

Each player the sum of whose hand exceeds the sum of the dealer's hand(provided that the value of the player's hand does not exceed 8)receives his/her House Bet(s) and receives an equal sum from the dealerin winnings. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, andthe player has three cards and the dealer has two cards, then the playerreceives his/her House Bet(s) on that hand plus an equal amount inwinnings. If the player's value is equal to the dealer's value, and theplayer has two cards and the dealer has three cards, then the dealercollects the player's House Bet(s). If the player's value is equal tothe dealer's value, and the player and the dealer have the same numberof cards, the player receives his/her House Bet(s) but no winnings withone exception: if the dealer and the player each have a three-card handwith a value of 9 (known as “Two Over”), the player receives from thedealer his/her House Bets on that hand plus winnings equal to 8 timeshis/her House Bets.

D. Fourth Variation

Within the fourth variation, as described in variations A-C ofImplementation III, each player has the option to place an additionalbet (also known as the “Chi” bet or the “Qi” bet) to be made before anycards are dealt in a hand, where the minimum and maximum size isdesignated by the casino. If the player's first two cards are a pair ofAces, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s, 7s, 9s or 10s, then the player receiveshis/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 8 times the Chi bet. If theplayer's first two cards are a pair of 8s then the player receiveshis/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 88 times the Chi bet. If theplayer receives any other two-card hand, the dealer collects the Chibet. There is one additional payout which can be added at the discretionof the House in a multi-deck structure: If the player's first two cardsare the Ace of Diamonds and the 7 of Diamonds (not necessarily in thatorder) and the dealer's first two cards are also the Ace of Diamonds andthe 7 of Diamonds (not necessarily in that order), the player receiveshis/her Chi bet plus winnings equal to 10,000 times the Chi bet—thisoutcome is called “The Perfect”. At the discretion of the House, therequirements for The Perfect can be changed from the Ace and 7 ofDiamonds for both player and dealer to the Ace and 7 of a different suit(Spades, Hearts or Clubs) for both player and dealer or to any twodefined cards of a given suit for both player and dealer (e.g. the Kingof Hearts and the 8 of Hearts, the Ten of Diamonds and the 8 ofDiamonds, etc.).

IV. Player Against the House Implementation, with Side Bet Variation

In a still further implementation, a special table is used, an exampleof which is seen in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1, a special felt is situated uponon a standard blackjack table. The layout 10 of this table, mostlylikely to be placed in a casino, is a semi-circle with the dealerpositioned in the middle of the straight side, facing the playersarrayed at locations ‘12’ around the semi-circle, and with dealersituated at location 14. On the felt in front of each player 12 is alarge circle 20 in which the word “Bet” is written—this is the space inwhich each player 12 places his/her ante and subsequent bet to buy athird card (or House Bet(s) in III C., above). Above the Bet circle 20,closer to the dealer is a smaller diamond 22, in which the word “Chi”(or “Qi”) is written—this is the space where each player can placehis/her Chi bet. In online or video-game versions of the card game forthis implementation, the onscreen layout of the table is similar toabove, and the player makes his/her decisions electronically.

V. Game Show Implementation

In yet another implementation, a card game is played as a game show. Thegame show can be played before a live audience, can be televised, or canbe filmed for later broadcast. In this implementation, three contestantscompete in a game show of perception and deception.

The method of playing the card game in this implementation providesrules that each player gets two cards—the first face up, the second facedown. After a round of betting, each player who hasn't folded has theoption to buy a third card, dealt face up. After another round ofbetting, the remaining hand with a value now closest to 8, without goingover, wins. Only the final digit matters—for example, 5 or 15 or 25 areall the same value: 5. When there are two or more hands of top value, athree-card hand beats a two-card hand of equal value.

The three players each get a fixed amount (e.g.; $800 or $8,000) towager. The first round is No Limit—each player can bet any or all ofhis/her money and bluffing is a big part of the game. Players have 8seconds to make each decision—after a decision is made, the player hitsa button and the digital clock in the background starts counting downagain. Viewers of the game show are able to see the hidden cards of allthe players—such as by use of ‘lip stick’ camera or ‘hole card’ camera.Before every hand is dealt, each player must “ante up” (e.g.; make aninitial bet to start the action). If a player is dealt three 2s, he/shegets to draw a 4^(th) card—if that card is the final 2 in the deck, theplayer wins a special prize. If any player's value is 9 (“an Over”),he/she must ante up twice on the next hand.

The two contestants with the highest totals continue on to Big 8—theplayers take turns choosing one of the 8 hostesses. The chosen hostessreveals an oversized card with a value between 1 and 8 (the higher thenumber, the greater the prize money). The hostess then chooses acategory—People, Places, Things, Thoughts, Movies, Mind, Games and GrabBag—and the player must correctly answer to win the prize.

The contestant with the highest total continues on to Double or Nothing. . . against an expert in psychology. The cards are reshuffled and the8 hostesses briefly show their numbers to the player and the audience,but not to the expert. The clock counts down from 88 seconds as theplayer announces which hostess has the 8 card and the expert decides, intalking with the player and the hostesses, whether to choose “Truth” or“Lie”. If the expert is wrong, our contestant either doubles up; if theexpert is right, our contestant loses everything.

At the end, the contestants for the next show are introduced. Viewerscan go online (e.g.; via the Internet) to “back” the player of theirchoice—a lucky at-home participant, randomly chosen from the pool ofpeople who backed the winner, is announced each show and receives aunique 8 to Win prize.

VI. Decision Optimization Matrix

The following matrix illustrates an optimization strategy. In thismatrix, the rows indicate the player, the columns indicate the dealer,the symbol “t” indicates buying a third card, and the “f” symbolrepresents standing with two cards. For example, if a player has atwo-card value of 5 and the dealer's one card showing is 7 (the capital“T”) then the player should take—that is, buy—a 3^(rd) card. However, ifthe player has a two-card value of 6 and the dealer's one card showingis 8 (the capital “F”) then the player should stay with his/her originaltwo cards.

$\begin{matrix}\underset{\_}{{Decision}\mspace{14mu} {Optimization}\mspace{14mu} {Matrix}} \\\begin{matrix}\; & 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 & 6 & 7 & 8 & 9 & 0 \\1 & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & f & t & t \\2 & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & f & t & t \\3 & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & f & t & t \\4 & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & f & t & t \\5 & t & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & t & t \\6 & t & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & t & t \\7 & t & t & t & t & T & f & f & f & t & t \\8 & t & t & t & t & t & F & f & f & t & t \\9 & t & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & t & t \\0 & t & t & t & t & f & f & f & f & t & t\end{matrix}\end{matrix}$

VII. Test Results

The following set of test results show three (3) iterations of tenmillion (10⁷) hands of cards in a card game implementation as describedabove. Each test shows the number of hands won and lost (ties are notincluded), and how many times the player won for each of the four (4)different ways that the player can win. The first number under ‘Win’ iswinning with the two 4's case, called “Win#0”. The next is winning whenthe player and the dealer each have a three-card sum=9, called “Win#1”.The next is a normal win, beating the dealer, or the dealer having a 9and the player having a different sum, called “Win#2”. The next iswinning when the player and the dealer each have a hand of equal valuebut the player has a three-card hand and the dealer has a two-card hand,called “Win#3”. The final number on that row, called “Win#4”, is theactual real tie (when the player and the dealer each have a hand ofequal value and each has the same number of cards) where the playersimply gets their wager(s) back, which is not a truly a ‘win’ scenario.

The ‘Hand situations’ table shows how many of each of the 100 differenttypes of results the player encountered (e.g. player has final value of0, dealer has final value of 0; player has final value of 1, dealer hasfinal value of 0, etc.). All these numbers added together, plus theWin#0 number, equal ten million (10⁷) because when the player wins ontwo 4's, the dealer's card is irrelevant, so it has not been recordedamong the 100 different types of results the player encountered.

A. First Test.

Player Dealer Total money money Won Total Bet Won/Bet 9716496 1028350416289910 16573414 0.982894049469832 (0.0171059505301684) Won Lost Win#0Win#1 Win#2 Win#3 Win#4 4698359 4628914 56842 50429 4386811 204277672727

Hand Situations (Overlay the Strategy Matrix):

72337 72841 72855 72378 73252 72683 73635 68663 73699 114082 73154 7178373259 72572 73548 72463 72769 68723 73262 113596 73422 72687 71849 7242873405 72878 73297 68238 72825 112919 73013 72804 72895 71497 73083 7262073807 68640 72295 114328 72864 73252 73001 72634 71668 72552 73288 6798073775 113914 73162 73103 72694 72834 73115 71245 73324 68755 73304113953 72942 72743 72742 72762 73322 72684 72802 68453 73236 11377472985 71954 73055 72929 73128 73121 72876 67572 72909 113072 73694 7271273245 73008 72885 72088 73466 68535 72026 112701 292299 291830 292801290715 292743 290705 291423 274428 292151 449741

B. Second Test.

Player Dealer Total money money Won Total Bet Won/Bet 9714388 1028561216289968 16575580 0.982769109738543 (0.017230890261457) Won Lost Win#0Win#1 Win#2 Win#3 Win#4 4695984 4630945 56789 50731 4383354 205110673071

Hand Situations (Overlay the Strategy Matrix):

71510 73072 73627 72952 72990 73170 73634 68508 72803 113784 73183 7112173331 72560 72975 72501 72528 67633 73278 112954 73227 72650 72155 7302373623 72511 73321 68648 72770 113674 72866 73300 73057 72155 72667 7249373197 68981 73220 113887 73178 72549 73448 73340 71935 72677 72944 6819473448 113384 73623 72637 73516 72780 72683 71705 72467 68284 73591113695 73175 72551 73453 72497 73193 72857 72087 68388 73019 11376972500 72444 72866 72188 73208 72874 73338 67674 72901 113072 73031 7234773058 73055 73232 73351 72931 68093 71881 114127 291849 291372 292296291351 293358 291856 291953 273220 293748 449431

C. Third Test.

Player Dealer Total money money Won Total Bet Won/Bet 9718587 1028141316291638 16573051 0.983019843479634 (0.0169801565203656) Won Lost Win#0Win#1 Win#2 Win#3 Win#4 4697461 4628579 57072 50359 4386074 203956673960

Hand Situations (Overlay the Strategy Matrix):

72239 73153 73012 72725 72972 72618 73349 68575 73345 113283 73116 7123573154 72814 73349 72860 73022 68047 73126 113067 73058 72584 71693 7266073154 72301 73512 67949 73294 113577 73002 72704 73232 71658 73211 7310773493 68925 73079 113544 73619 72909 73515 72800 71926 72988 73347 6800473011 113512 72727 72779 72964 73272 73338 71502 73686 68845 73271113191 72858 73092 73451 72465 72915 72975 71983 68179 73576 11330373200 72565 72988 72629 73209 72634 73090 67054 73124 113305 73008 7329173106 72521 73144 73063 73175 68264 71810 113141 292604 291104 292724290535 293568 290419 293697 272960 292965 449230

The above three (3) tests show that the House has an advantage of 1.7%per unit wagered (2.9% per hand). Also seen is that the player wins morehands than the dealer and the player has an opportunity to be paid 8:1,whereas the dealer's win never exceeds even money. Still, the House hasthe advantage because of the ‘buy a 3rd card’ rule. Moreover, theforgoing tests make the following seven (7) assumptions:

-   -   1. The player wins immediately with a two-card hand of 4 and 4,        and gets paid 8:1 (e.g.; $1 bet is returned with $8 winnings)    -   2. The player must double his/her initial “ante” bet to buy a        3^(rd) card;    -   3. The dealer takes a third card with any 2-card value except 5        or 6 or 7 or 8;    -   4. If, after taking a third card, the dealer's hand has a value        of 9 and the player's three-card hand has a value of 9 (known as        “Two Over”), the player gets paid 8:1.    -   5. If the player and the dealer have hands of equal value, a        3-card hand beats a 2-card hand (with the exception of the        1^(st) condition above: when the player has a 4 & 4, he wins        immediately). Neither the player nor dealer wins when both have        the same hand value and the same number of cards with the        exception of the 4^(th) condition above.    -   6. With the exception of #1 and #4 above, the player gets paid        even money with a winning two-card or three-card hand.    -   7. The player uses optimal strategy based on percentage return        in each situation.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or essential characteristics. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicatedby the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. Allchanges which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of theclaims are to be embraced within their scope.

1. A method of playing a card game, the method comprising: dealing cardsfrom a conventional deck of cards to a plurality of card players; addingup the face value of each card in each player's hand; and when the sumof the cards in each player's hand is more than one digit, the leadingdigit is removed to leave a single digit, wherein the card player havinga resultant single-digit value now closest to 8, without going over 8,is the winner of the card game.
 2. The method as defined in claim 1,wherein each card player plays against all other players.
 3. The methodas defined in claim 1, wherein each card player plays against anothersaid card player who is a dealer performing said dealing cards from theconventional deck of cards to the plurality of card players.
 4. Themethod as defined in claim 3, wherein: if the value of the dealer'scards is 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 9, the dealer receives a third card; and ifthe value of the dealer's cards is 5, 6, 7 or 8, the dealer does notreceives a third card stays.